Hostage
by katielgk
Summary: "The Invasion" reimagined. What if Leo was taken captive by the Foot instead of being thrown back to his brothers? Tiger Claw has the task of watching over the turtle. Inspired by RingingT's comic on deviantart, and a personal experiment on getting into Tiger Claw's head.
1. Intro

*sigh* The very short intro. The regular chapters should be longer than this, promise. The story itself won't go on forever. I wanted an excuse to dig into Tiger Claw's personality some and was inspired by a short and wonderfully drawn comic by RingingT on deviantart. With their blessing I expanded the idea into this fic with the same title. I urge you to look up the artist!

She re-imagined The Invasion where, instead of Leo being thrown back to his brothers, his T-cell had been broken, and Shredder chose to keep him as a hostage. Tiger Claw was put in charge of taking care of him. This story is my interpretation of that.

Disclaimer: I do not own the TMNT or any character used in this story.

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><p>The stench of the sewers was potent on his senses, but only served to fuel his anger towards his opponent. It was the kind of home Hamato Yoshi deserved, and it would make a fine grave for him.<p>

"Now I will tear you to pieces!"

"Sensei!"

He spared a glance only to be sure that the three turtles and young girl could not reach them. He would not be distracted by them as Yoshi would.

"Go! Leave this place!" He ordered frantically. Oroku Saki could have laughed. The rat knew his own end was near, and now he would be shamed.

"Fitting that your sons are here to see you fall!" he lifted his leg, his knee knocking Yoshi back.

The children yelled encouragements to their master, and his hate churned within him again. That Yoshi had ones to call to him endearingly, when he had no one was an insult. His blows were being blocked, and a sudden fury and fear that he could still be defeated flared inside him. He pulled out a powder bomb. A still small voice from ages past might have whispered to him something of honor, but it was drowned out. Honor meant nothing anymore; he had nothing, and he would not be robbed of his victory of the one who stole from him his very being.

The yell from the rat made it seem that the powder had done its job, and he dove in for a final blow that did not connect. He saw Yoshi change his stance and knew what was coming. He could not stop it.

Blown backwards, everything went dark for many long moments. His armor had protected him from the worst of the damage, and when he recovered, he realized his enemy had not even had a chance to flee like the coward he was. He darted from the darkness, blinded by rage and the thrill of opportunity that Yoshi's back was turned. His gauntlet sliced at the rat finally, throwing him forward. He cried out in pain, yet still turned his eyes back. Saki swung again, snuffing out the life in them.

"No no no!"

Shredder grabbed the rat by his robe and dragged him forward.

"Don't do it!"

"Master Splinter!"

"NO!"

He listened to their despair, an echo of his own for years.

"YOU! You...MONSTER!"

A mutated freak, calling him a monster. The entire family was responsible for his loss. They took away everything he had ever cared for in the world. Their words did not matter. Hamato Yoshi was gone, and so still was his only love. And the daughter she left behind... They were the monsters.

He gripped his arm in pain. He wouldn't fight the freaks now, but the sight of them, the thought of Karai, reminded him of the turtle he had already taken down tonight. He turned back to them; the one in red was still screaming at him. Hamato Yoshi called them his sons.

"You have a missing brother." He said it simply, and it grabbed their attention. Red fell silent, but his fiery glare did not falter. "If you want him returned to you, you will find Karai, and bring her to me."

If it was possible for them, the three brothers paled, along with their human friend. The one in purple spoke shakily. "You...you have Leo?"

He simply turned away again. With or without them he would find his daughter.

"Tell us where our brother is Shredder!" Orange bellowed.

Their brother may already be dead. He'd ordered Tiger Claw to take Leonardo to the Kraang to keep him from death. A hostage was troublesome, but with the invasion, he decided it may be useful to have the remaining turtles do the work for him. He would have Karai at his side again.

"SHREDDER!"

The hot fury in the red-banded turtle's voice did not shake the metal shell of a man. It was the same as his own, fueled by loss, and hate. "FACE ME!"

He didn't.

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><p>Commentscritiques welcome! The rest of the story will focus mostly on Tiger Claw and Leonardo.


	2. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own TMNT

Please read Author's Notes at the end!

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><p>Tiger Claw did not trust the Kraang. Their quick success in invasion was made possible with Shredder's help, but Tiger Claw was sure a betrayal was inevitable. The Foot Clan leader was reluctant to heed his warning, his mind focused still on the lost Karai. As his second, Tiger Claw remained watchful, determined to not be caught off guard. He hated them.<p>

The captive turtle was near death after his brave stand off. The youngling had impressed Tiger Claw with his skill and daring, but in the end, Leonardo still lost.

They could have delivered the broken body of their leader to the remaining turtles before finishing off the entire clan, or chasing them away for good. Master Shredder had other plans. If he passed, Leonardo would be useless as a bargaining chip, not that Tiger Claw believed Shredder would really let the turtle go anyway. Still, he followed his orders and brought the battered child to the Kraang to be treated. He stood by, wary of their actions. While they questioned the reason for keeping an enemy alive, it seemed as though they would comply. The Kraang, for now, were still willing to work with the Shredder.

One of them stepped toward him, his exosuit clanging and whirring with each movement. "The turtle known as 'Leonardo' is in a state known as 'critical'," the alien stated plainly. "Kraang is giving medical treatment as requested, but Kraang's efforts may be useless."

Tiger Claw did not shift his stance, standing before the Kraang droid with his arms folded over his chest. He held back a loathing snarl. "Just do what you must," he said evenly. "Master Shredder wants him alive."

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><p>Fog surrounded him, and he made no effort to shake it. He floated in it, and it coddled his numb mind. Distant sounds drifted through the haze, and to pass the time, he tried to name them. Whirring, buzzing, and clanging, like machinery, made him think he was in his brother's lab.<p>

_Maybe I fell asleep watching Donny work,_ he mused.

It was strange, because he didnt spend much time in the lab normally, but he'd been interested in the progress of Don's new project, even if they disagreed on strategies. With the inevitable invasion drawing near, he felt more and more that they wouldn't be ready for it. He wanted to utilize the Turtle Mech his brother had put countless hours of work into, but they needed somewhere else to go. Somewhere to stay safe, in case they couldn't be ready in time. Somewhere to run to….

Donny wouldn't mind him sleeping there, but Leo knew _he_ would mind waking up sore from whatever position he was in. Already he could feel his aching muscles protesting. He focused finally, on surfacing from the fog.

The smell of blood hit him next. It was strong and bitter, and mixed with another scent of sterile environment. The whirring and clanking suddenly didn't seem so familiar, and he realized he was not in a safe place just before the pain hit.

It was fire around and inside of him. His head exploded and every muscle seemed to be wrenching themselves from his very bones. The smell of his own blood invaded his nostrils, and he wanted to retch. His chest and throat seized up in pain as he gasped, trying to scream. Something held him down. The stilted and ridiculous speech of the Kraang echoed around him, but he couldn't make out the words.

Leo didn't know if he was moving. He had no thoughts but to beg for everything to stop. After an eternity, it seemed to. The fog drifted in again, darker. It enveloped him, and finally took him away. The pain numbed slightly, but he could let his mind go. The Kraang had him; the invasion had started. Where were his brothers, friends, sensei?

And as suddenly as he had become aware, Leonardo was gone again.

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><p>A month passed before Tiger Claw saw the wounded turtle again after bringing him back from the Kraang's "hospital". He had quickly become uncomfortable in the alien surroundings, and when it became apparent the youngling would do no better or worse wherever he was, Tiger Claw took him back to the Foot Clan's hideout. He was glad to be back where it was more familiar, and after a couple days where Leonardos condition still made no change, he allowed himself to wander away.<p>

Forty-three days in total, the young warrior had lain in a coma, and Tiger Claw was inexplicably frustrated at the lack of change.

_Why keep something alive that is so near to death?_

He wondered idly if his feelings were rooted in cruelty or mercy. After all, ,the boy was just a cub. Broken and battered. If he woke up at all, he would awaken fatherless. Perhaps by then, the last of his kind. And then he would be sent back to the world of the dead, all while the world he knew fell into chaos. As Tiger Cla looking on, the turtle still made no movement except for the steady rise and fall of his chest.

_He will have nothing to live for._

The thought only numbed him, as he had long ago ceased to feel compassion. He was an onlooker only, biding his time, observing even as he carried out orders. Until his opportunity for revenge came. For the life that was taken from him, for his tail, for his eye and ear. He had waited years for the man who had his tail as a trophy, but the ones responsible for his perilous journey through the dimensions were within his grasp.

His eyes narrowed dangerously as he viewed the still sleeping turtle. He would wait until his brothers were now longer of any use to Master Shredder. The man had already completed his revenge, Tiger Claw could soon complete his own.

He glowered again as old memories filled his mind. He began to drift out of the room, as quietly as he came, but a soft tormented whine from the once-banded turtle made him pause. He glanced back, but Leonardo made no movement.

"This is none of my concern," he muttered to no one, striding out of the room.

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><p>AN: *Wipes sweat from brow* Whew! I know this has been a LONG-awaited chapter guys! I'm really sorry it took so long to get out! The winter months were crazy for me at work. Things are finally starting to slow down now, which means you can expect to see much more frequent updates from me! Now this story, Hostage, isn't going to be a very long one, which is why the chapters themselves are fairly short, but I am so happy with the reception it's gotten (despite my long absence)!

I have a few, much longer stories that I've put a lot of work into that I hope to start posting soon. Please keep an eye out for them! In the meantime, please enjoy this update!

Thank you so much for your comments!


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